2017 Epcot International Food and Wine Festival: August 31, 2017 - November 13, 2017

[lomillerin]

40 to 50 minutes.

Thank you. Is it possible to go to the mix it seminar at 12:15 and then the beverage seminar at 1:30. Time wise?

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Thank you. Is it possible to go to the mix it seminar at 12:15 and then the beverage seminar at 1:30. Time wise?

Yes

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

WVL was worth it because of extra time, artisanal cheeses, dedicated bar, gift bag with special glass- it sounds like all of this was absent last night???

Pretty much all the benefits were gone. You did Get a gift bag and it had 2 stale pastries and a very small packet of tea. i did not see any evidence of a bar ad someone else did. Even the servers seemed not as attentive.


I went by guest relations to complain. They don't even take your contact info which pretty much sums up Disney's concern.
I'm done

 

[randumb0]

So basically you pay almost twice the price of the cheap seats for stale bread?

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

So basically you pay almost twice the price of the cheap seats for stale bread?

Yep


It's never been a great value and I could only justify it for the feeling. Now the only feeling was "rip off"

 

[bluecastle]

Hopped over to Epcot to get the lay of the land and to have a few snacks. I got the Festival Sampler as I knew I would most be doing cocktails on my trip. Cast member cashier actually questioned me if that's what I was going to do otherwise she was not going to let me get it Lol. I tried 4 things yesterday at the food and wine festival:

First stop Refreshment Port for a Dole whip with Bacardi coconut rum. I LOVED THIS! It was creamy and cold perfect on a hot day. Used a ticket on it more than worth it.

Scotland Fresh Potato Pancake with Scottish smoked salmon and herbed sour cream. Awesome I got a nice hot pancake nice size in my opinion. Everything melded nicely together for 4 perfect bites! Even went well with my spiked Dole Whip.

I used my next Sampler ticket at Almond Orchard and got the Moet and Chandon Brut Rose Imperial champagne. My CM cashier was like wow great deal on that! By itself the Rose was ok. I think because it was sparkling. I've had cheaper Rose not sparkling that tasted way better alone.

Next I ended at the Cheese Studio for what I was most excited for the Cheese Trio! It did not disappoint. I loved each one I found the cream puff tasty I got a good amount of Apricot on it not too sweet though. The smoked salmon pinwheel was very tasty and the toast underneath was nice and soft surprisingly and thankfully. The strawberry macaroon was super sweet but I loved it didn't taste the pepper cheese though. This did pair really nicely with my glass of Rose. I would recommend doing both together.

Headed to the Festival center as I wanted to know where it was located since I have a demo today it is pretty far from everything else in the showcase. I'm glad I went ahead of time I've only been to Epcot one other time this past August so I don't know where everything is like the other parks I got turned around a few times.

All in all a good couple of hours at the festival and now I understand where everything is for the rest of the week.

Where did you buy the Sampler? Thanks for your reviews!

 

[Mika02]

Where did you buy the Sampler? Thanks for your reviews!

There are 2 merchandising booth right at the entrance to the world showcase. You can pick up the Sampler and the Wristlet gift cards as well as Souvenirs.

 

[Mika02]

Saturday was my last day at the Festival. I had one culinary demo and then I mostly finished up some tasting around the booths in the showcase and then ended the night celebrating my mom's 60th Birthday at the Party for Senses.

The culinary demo was very good it was with Sally James and the focus was on Seafood from Australia. It did take a while for me to get a sampler plate and when i did the food was luke warm at best.

I started with Farm Fresh and got the Cider Flight, the Citrus Freak was my least Favorite my favorite was the Raspberry Hard Cider with the Elderberry Cream landing somewhere in the middle.

Then I headed to Flavors from the Fire and got the Piggy Wings. The ones I got were not warm the sauce were salty. The meat was at least tender but it wasn't my favorite or something I would get again.

I headed to Light Labs to use my Sampler ticket on a Bleu Spectrum: Blanc de Bleu Cuvée Mousseux with Boba Pearls. It was cool to watch it being poured. It also tasted pretty good kind of like a peach Moscato for me. I like the Boba Pearls although I didn't eat the whole glass full.

Next I went to Earth Eats to Try the Peanut Butter and White Chocolate Mousse with a Caramel Drizzle and the Raspberry Mead as I always wanted to try a Mead. Well this was probably my least favorite drink of the whole festival. I threw about half of it out. The Same result with the Mousse my least favorite sampling I threw a lot of it out.

I stopped at the Wine and Dine for the Trio of Artisan Cheese. I love cheese so this was right up my alley. My favorite was the Blue with the Apricot Jam, with the Toma with Honey coming in second and the Fromager Affirois de Excellence which was Brie like but without the flavor. I wished the toast was a little softer.

Then on to Ireland for the Bunratty Meade Honey Wine which was Excellent. The pour was kind of small in my opinion but this wine was so tasty.

I circled back to Scotland and had another Potato Pancake and Scottish smoked Salmon and also to taste the Citrus Thistle with Hendricks Gin. Pancake still very good although i didn't get one quite as fresh as the 1st time. The Citrus Thistle was probably my favorite drink of the whole week I could feel the effects of the alcohol so it was very strong and tasty and well worth my sampler ticket!

Next on to France for a Crème Brûlée with Housemade Rasberry Jam and a La Passion Martini Slush. The Crème Brûlée was good the top was nice to crack through I really didn't get the Raspberry Jam through the rest of the dessert though. I loved the La Passion as well great refreshing and cool as well as nice and yummy on the hot day.

Stopped in Africa to taste the Jam Jar Shiraz. I liked it a lot a good red wine sweet like I like it. Not necessarily something I would keep to sip alone though. Would have been great with good meal.

My last drink was the Ritzy Lycee in China. I like it they pour the liquor right in front of you my only issue was that they have the mix sitting with ice waiting to pour the liquor into the cup so by the time you are able to drink it it's a bit watered down. Good none the less or refreshing at the least.

I ended the sampling at Farm Fresh for another Crispy Chicken. Again still very good and a great way to end my Festival before party of the senses.

So I had an Amazing time and would definitely do it all again. Even though I didn't get to try everything I wanted or had somethings that I didn't necessarily like It was all worth the fun.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

I think I'm the only person on this thread that had a bad experience with the Farm Fresh Chicken! I'm glad it worked out wonderful for everyone else though!

 

[DVC4US]

Where did you buy the Sampler? Thanks for your reviews!

There are 2 merchandising booth right at the entrance to the world showcase. You can pick up the Sampler and the Wristlet gift cards as well as Souvenirs.

They can also be purchased at F&W merchandise booths around WS. When I was there over Labor Day weekend I was checking availability for our trip in Oct and the only booth that did not have them at that time was the one in America.

 

[MissAnonD]

I'll be at F&W in 4 weeks! I'm writing myself a list of items I want to try. I've been reading through this thread for the past few days to get an idea of what the highlights are. I'm thinking of starting a thread on here where posters post their favourite items from the booths (literally just posting the name of it and maybe one line on why they liked it). Not sure if that's just duplicating posts from this thread though so what do you think? Good idea or just stick to this main thread? Don't want to make too many sub-threads on F&W if people would rather stick to one main thread! Also not sure if there's already a thread like it so please point me in that direction if so

 

[sherlockmiles]

I'll be at F&W in 4 weeks! I'm writing myself a list of items I want to try. I've been reading through this thread for the past few days to get an idea of what the highlights are. I'm thinking of starting a thread on here where posters post their favourite items from the booths (literally just posting the name of it and maybe one line on why they liked it). Not sure if that's just duplicating posts from this thread though so what do you think? Good idea or just stick to this main thread? Don't want to make too many sub-threads on F&W if people would rather stick to one main thread! Also not sure if there's already a thread like it so please point me in that direction if so

I'd probably just stick with this thread since its been around and many people have already posted that info; its unlikely they'll post it again somewhere else.

 

[crazy4wdw]

I'll be at F&W in 4 weeks! I'm writing myself a list of items I want to try. I've been reading through this thread for the past few days to get an idea of what the highlights are. I'm thinking of starting a thread on here where posters post their favourite items from the booths (literally just posting the name of it and maybe one line on why they liked it). Not sure if that's just duplicating posts from this thread though so what do you think? Good idea or just stick to this main thread?

I'd rather keep everything regarding F & W on this thread. I've been closing down other threads on the restaurant board that are directly related to the Food & Wine Festival

 

[MissAnonD]

I'd rather keep everything regarding F & W on this thread. I've been closing down other threads on the restaurant board that are directly related to the Food & Wine Festival

Not a problem! Glad I asked first I'll keep reading through this thread then and making a note of people's favourites as I'm going along. Thanks!

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

I think I'm the only person on this thread that had a bad experience with the Farm Fresh Chicken! I'm glad it worked out wonderful for everyone else though!

I just tried it. Uh, I don't get the hype. Tough chicken, bad gravy and an "ok" cornbread. I tossed a lot of it

 

[sherlockmiles]

LOL - just finished reconciling my credit card statement that included our F&W trip..........BEST REASON to purchase a gift card!!! OMG - I thought I was going to go batty checking each and every kiosk charge! I had a gift card for 1/2 and my Disney Visa for the other half - thank goodness! Next year - 95% gift card!!

off to take some aspirin.....

 

[Chisoxcollector]

I think I'm the only person on this thread that had a bad experience with the Farm Fresh Chicken! I'm glad it worked out wonderful for everyone else though!

Nope, my wife and I weren't crazy about it either. It was a big disappointment after seeing all of the rave reviews.

 

[Chisoxcollector]

Here is a ranked list of the items I've tried thus far, along with where to get them and my rating. Items with multiple scores are things I tried more than once.

I'll be back at least 3-4 more times, so I'll post an updated list later.

Food

Teriyaki Glazed Spam Hash - Hawai'i (9/10, 8/10) - I can't believe my favorite item is a Spam dish!

Piggy Wings - Flavors From Fire (8/10) -

Kalua Pork Slider - Hawai'i (8/10)

Tipsy Laird - Scotland (8/10)

Salmon BLT Sushi Roll - Japan (9/10, 5/10) - The first one was amazing. All I tasted the second time was lettuce and tomato.

Smoked Corned Beef - Flavors From Fire (9/10, 5/10) - Delicious the first time. The corned beef was borderline inedible the second time, thought the chips and cheese were still good.

Passion Fruit Cheesecake - Hawai'i (7/10)

Croissant aux Escargots - France (7/10) - So buttery!

Seared Scallops - Coastal Eats (7/10)

Spinach and Paneer Cheese Pocket - Africa (7/10)

Korma Chicken - India (7/10)

Crispy Pork Belly - Brazil (7/10)

Baked Shrimp Scampi Dip - Coastal Eats (7/10, 7/10) Great flavor, but the Shrimp were chewy both times.

Traditional Scottish Lamb Stew - Scotland (7/10)

Seared Shrimp and Scallop Cake - Thailand (7/10)

Black Pepper Shrimp - China (7/10, 7/10)

Peanut Butter White Chocolate Mousse - Earth Eats (7/10)

Warm Cheddar Cheese and Stout Dip - Ireland (7/10)

Cheese Trio - Cheese Studio (7/10)

Charcuterie in a Cone - Spain (7/10)

Crème Brûlée à la Confiture de Framboises - France (6/10) - could have been a tad sweeter. Almost tasted like milk.

Savory Caramelized Onion Boursin Garlic Cheese Tart - Cheese Studio (6/10) - Huge portion, but only okay taste.

Lump Crab Cake - Coastal Eats (6/10)

Chocolate Picante - Flavors From Fire (6/10) - Dense, but good flavor.

Wasabi Shumai Steamed Pork Dumplings - Japan (6/10) - Wife HATED these.

Roasted Irish Sausage - Ireland (6/10)

Seafood Salad - Spain (6/10) - Quite oily with TONS of bell peppers. What little seafood there was tasted pretty good.

Grilled Tuna Tataki - Hawaii (6/10)

Beef Empanada - Patagonia (6/10) - A bit too sweet.

L'Orange Cotton Candy - Craft Beers (6/10)

Almond Breeze Strawberry Smoothie - Almond Orchard (6/10)

Sweet Pancake - Flavors From Fire (5/10) - Pancake was extremely dense.

Cauliflower Risotto - Almond Orchard (5/10)

Crispy Chicken - Farm Fresh (5/10)

Fresh Potato Pancake - Scotland (4/10) - Is the smoked salmon supposed to be hot? It was somewhat off putting.

Tequila and Chipotle Shrimp - Mexico (3/10) - The Shrimp were decent, but the thing they were served on was horrible.

Sweet Avocado Crema - Active Eats (2/10) - This just did not work for me. The wife liked it well enough.


Drinks

Mango Bubble Tea - China (9/10, 9/10, 8/10) - So refreshing! Third one didn't have as much mango flavor, but it was still good.

Moët & Chandon Brut Rosé Imperial Champagne - Almond Orchard (8/10)

Kurt Russell's Gogi Pinot Noir - Earth Eats (7/10)

Frozen Caipirinha - Brazil (6/10)

Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Yellow Label Brut Champagne - Almond Orchard (6/10)

 

[MissAnonD]

Here is a ranked list of the items I've tried thus far, along with where to get them and my rating. Items with multiple scores are things I tried more than once.[...]

Thanks! Very helpful

 

[MissAnonD]

What's been people's experience of using the samplers at Joffreys kiosk? I know it wasn't allowed last year but think it might've changed this year?